accurate meaure of ejection fraction

[Tarace]

Hi,

I was diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy 5 years ago with an ejection fraction of 25.  Since then, all my ECHOs have showed 30 or 35.  Recently, I had a nuclear stress test, which showed I had an ejection fraction of 45.  My cardiologist says this is good, but I can't help wondering if it's accurate, since my other tests have all been lower.  Have any of you had similar experiences?  Which test is more acurate?

Thank you.

Tarace

[djcollins]

My ecoh has two numbers on it one is 33%  the other is 70%  what does this mean.

[.john57]

Your ejection fraction is not a static number, it changes constantly on a minute to minute, hour to hour and day to day basis the same as your blood pressure changes. There is a margin of error in reading echos of 5 to 10 %. The reading really only gives an estimate of whether your condition is getting better or worse. It can vary by a lot even in the course of only one day as can your blood pressure or pulse.

[anacyde]

The nuclear tests are usually a little better than the echos at getting an accurate measure of ejection fraction, so indeed this is very good news.  The reason they're a bit more accuate is because the tracer they use allows the eye to see with more precision the amount of blood being ejected with each beat.

Congratulations on your EF improvements.